Wednesday, 2 October 2024
by BD Banks
While the name Dominica opens it up for confusion with the much more well-known tourist destination of the Dominican Republic, the island nation is also home to miles of beaches and has increasingly been attracting visitors looking to shake up their annual sunny getaway.
Nestled between fellow Caribbean territories of Martinique and Guadeloupe, Dominica saw over 339,000 international tourists throughout 2023. Given that this is a spike of 37% from the year before, mainstream airlines are increasingly moving in to a market formerly served exclusively by low-cost and charter airlines.
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In the spring of 2022, American Airlines (AAL) became the first to launch a route from Miami to the Douglas-Charles Airport (DOM) in the capital of Marigot. The route proved popular enough to run twice a week throughout the year through American’s subsidiary American Eagle.
United Airlines (UAL) has become the second mainstream U.S. carrier to announce a flight to Dominica. The new route to DOM from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) will run once a week on Saturdays on a Boeing 737-700 (BA) plane; the flight from Newark will leave at 9:10 a.m. to arrive at 2:39 p.m. local time while the return flight will leave at 3:45 p.m. to arrive at 7:51 p.m.
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The first flight will run on Feb. 15, 2025 while service is not designed to be seasonal; service will continue year-round so long as there is enough demand.
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“United is proud to partner with the Discover Dominica Authority to add beautiful Dominica to our leading global route network,” United Airlines’ Vice President of International Network Matt Stevens said in a statement. “This addition further positions United as the airline of choice for customers looking to travel to unique destinations around the globe.”
It also stressed that it will be the only airline running a direct flight from the East Coast of the U.S. as well as the only one offering service out of Florida.
The flight is also meant to help what, by definition due to the island’s small size, is a limited market. Locals and tourists coming in to the island on a wider tour of the Caribbean usually rely on regional airlines such as Caribbean Airlines and Sunrise Airways. These airlines currently fly in from nearby Caribbean islands such as Antigua, Barbados and Saint Kitts.
As a result, most international visitors are already hardened Caribbean travelers who come to Dominica indirectly through a stopover — a fact that the nation has been trying to change by promoting its tourism industry and lobbying for more direct flights with larger airlines.
“The new service by United Airlines is a major step forward toward the island realizing the aggressive goal that it has set for itself and is part of the strategy being pursued in concert with the development of the new international airport,” Dominica’s Minister of Tourism, Hon. Denise Charles-Pemberton said in a statement. “This route will help alleviate the access constraints faced by the destination over the years.”
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